I’m going to take this time to be awesome. I usually wait until the end of the “Wrap-Up” to report on the Sports of Boston baseball league, but I recently took over first place. My favorite part about the situation is that I have Jose Reyes, Joey Votto, and Erik Bedard on the DL. I can’t even imagine what my team would be like if all of them were healthy. Will this cockiness be my downfall? Yeah, it probably will.

OFFENSE

B.J. Upton (CF), Tampa Bay Rays: Seen as a letdown over the past few seasons, Upton tried to resurrect his name last week by collecting a league-leading 12 hits. The hit parade included 3 doubles, 2 HR, and 9 RBI to go with 2 SB. Upton has had more RBI this month (15) than he had in the two previous months combined.

Derek Lee (1B), Chicago Cubs: Lee’s name has fallen off the chart in recent years after an incredible 46 HR season in 2005. Lee came back into the spotlight in Week 11 by hitting a league-leading 4 HR and driving in nine runs as part of an eight hit week. Lee has five home runs in June and is currently riding an 18 game hitting streak.

Ian Kinsler (2B), Texas Rangers: Mr. Power and Speed continues to give owners…power…and…uh…speed. Anyway, Kinsler’s attempt at a 30-30 season continued with 3 HR and 3 SB last week while hitting .348. Kinsler’s 18 HR this season already match his total from 2008 and it took him 54 less games to do it.

Ryan Braun (LF), Milwaukee Brewers: Braun contributed to your team no matter what the format was when he hit for the cycle…over the span of the week. Braun’s 10 total hits included: a double, a triple, two HR, 8 RBI, and 2 SB. Braun even led the majors with 10 runs scored.

Albert Pujols (1B), St. Louis Cardinals: Having only three hits coming into Sunday, Pujols unloaded on the Royals for 4 hits including 2 HR and 6 RBI. His totals for the week were 4 HR and a league-leading 11 RBI.

PITCHING

Kevin Millwood (SP), Texas Rangers: One of the big reasons behind the Rangers’ surge to first place is Millwood. He was brilliant in his two starts with a 1.93 ERA in 14.0 innings, 16 K’s, and a 1-1 record. The loss was in a 7 IP, 2 ER, 10 K game, so we can’t be mad at him for that.

Clayton Kershaw (SP), L.A. Dodgers: The young lefty had a fantastic week by not allowing a single run in his two starts. Kershaw went 1-0 and fanned 13 batters in his 12.2 innings of work. Kershaw has been great in May (2.57 ERA) and June (2.18 ERA) after a terrible April (7.29 ERA).

Kevin Gregg (RP), Chicago Cubs: Gregg had himself a great week for a closer. Not only did he save one game, he also outshined most starting pitchers by going 2-0.

Jose Valverde (RP), Houston Astros: Valverde came off the DL and immediately made an impact by picking up three saves and striking out four batters in four innings.

Felix Hernandez (SP), Seattle Mariners: King Felix is finally living up to the ridiculous hype that has surrounded his career. In two more starts last week, Hernandez struck out 14 batters in 16.1 IP while going 1-0 with his first complete game shutout this season. Hernandez has been on fire lately with 2 ER or less in each of his last six starts.

Why Should I Give a Crap About These Guys?

Juan Rivera (LF,RF), L.A. Angels: Rivera is quietly pushing the Angels into first place with his surge of offense. In June, he is hitting .328 with 5 HR and 18 RBI after a hitting .319 with 4 HR, and 13 RBI in May.

Scott Podsednik (LF,CF), Chicago White Sox: Those in need of a cheap batting average boost should try Podsednik who is hitting .333 in June with 7 SB. Six of Podsednik’s last 10 games have been multi-hit games.

Kevin Correia (SP,RP), San Diego Padres: Somebody had to pick up the slack when Peavy went on the DL. Correia has put together four straight quality outings and has gone 3-1 in that time while walking just two batters in those four starts.

Sports of Boston Friends and Family League

As previously mentioned, I took over first place after a 14-9-1 victory. The win would have been by a much larger margin, but Gil Meche screwed me over with 9 ER in 3.1 IP.